Freddies handmade jewellery

Thursday 9 June 2016

Cider Holder Bag Pattern For Festivals - My New Design

I had great fun with this design because my mini duffel (which doubles as a perfect carrier for a bottle of cider if you're headed to Glastonbury), was the perfect opportunity for me to bash out a design in the round.

My initial design ideas drew from Aztec Inspiration from The British Museum
I'd always wanted to design a Fair Isle pattern in the round, so with an effort to keep this knit quick and seamless, that's what I went for.

It was tricky to find the colours I fancied all within the same range, so shock horror, I ended up turning back to my fond favourites from the Rowan Yarns range. With sturdy Handknit Cotton holding up the structure of the bag, there are flashes of the Anchor Artiste Metallic for a bit of added texture and sparkle.

I'm really pleased with how it came out except the bulkiness of the Handknit Cotton has meant that the drawstring won't pull the opening closed all the way.

Originally this was envirioned as a bag which you could put some cash into, maybe a disposable camera; just something small which you could fill with bits and navigate the crowds at a big festival.

Once I'd seen that it didn't close though, I started to look at the cicumference of the opening more closely - and soon realised that it would be better suited for carrying a bottle of alcohol. I a bottle of wine or cider would fit quite nicely. Hence why I've now decided in myh mind that this really is more of a cider holder bag pattern.

Although I'm allergic to crowds, and therefore would probably never go to a big festival (hats off to you people - I don't know how you do it), I have always wondered how you cart your cans around. Well I suggestg this yearf you ditch them, knit yourself one of these guys instead (or get a very kind knitter friend to do it for you).

You start off at the top of the bag and work downwards, with stranded colourwork in the round (the Fair Isle technique), before swapping down to dpns (double pointed needles) for the base shaping. I'm a lover of technical knits, they just get my juices flowing - so this is a good one if you're a bit like me and like a knit to keep you interested. Get your cider holder bag pattern for instant download.